Commonly, a pneumatically powered or combustion-powered fastener-driving tool is used for driving a fastener, such as a nail, through an opening in a workpiece, such as a metal channel, into a substrate adjacent to the workpiece. Typically, such a tool has a nosepiece, which is arranged to guide a driven fastener. Because such a tool tends to obscure the opening, it can be very difficult to align the nosepiece so that a fastener can be precisely driven through the opening.
Positioning or pointing mechanisms are known for aligning the nosepiece of a pneumatically powered or combustion-powered fastener-driving tool relative to an opening in a workpiece. A positioning mechanism of particular interest is disclosed in Howard et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,238,167. A positioning mechanism of related interest is disclosed in Dutton U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,607.
The positioning mechanism illustrated and described in Howard et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,238,167 is employed in a powered fastener-driving tool and comprises a probe having a tapered end connected to an actuator, via a spring strip, so as to be laterally movable. As a fastener is driven and the tool recoils, the probe is engaged by the driven fastener, so as to be moved laterally and from the opening.